Financial adviser Munish Sood pleads guilty in FBI college hoops case

Chris white and Jeff Greer discuss the latest FBI indictments and what the new details mean for Louisville.
Jeff Faughender/Courier Journal

The FBI announced charges of fraud and corruption in college basketball, and references a public research university in Kentucky that fits the description of the University of Louisville.
(Photo11: CJ File Photo)

Sood, a New Jersey-based financial adviser, admitted to conspiring "with others to offer and pay bribes to multiple NCAA men's college basketball coaches" so that coaches would persuade players to retain Sood, according to court documents filed Monday in the Southern District of New York.

He skipped indictment and pleaded guilty to counts of conspiracy to commit bribery, honest services fraud and travel act offenses; payment of bribes to an agent of a federally funded organization; and wire fraud conspiracy.

Sood was one of the 10 men arrested in September when the FBI unsealed complaints detailing schemes that included attempts to bribe the families of college basketball prospects and their coaches.

According to court documents, Sood worked with sports agent Christian Dawkins to facilitate bribes. Among the coaches named in Sood's plea document are former University of South Carolina assistant coach Lamont Evans (now at Oklahoma State), Arizona assistant Emanuel "Book" Richardson and Southern California assistant Tony Bland.

All three coaches were arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud and solicitation of bribes.